Koru Naturals is a New Zealand based company that offers natural cosmetic products worldwide, using . Emu Oil is one of their products, and is said to moisturize and soothe skin and moisturize hair. I used it primarily to help with Caeleigh’s eczema. Emu Oil is non-greasy, and a little goes a LONG way, so you can apply over and over again and it still lasts quite a long time. You can also apply it to hair to help heal and moisturize.

For Caeleigh’s skin, she loved it. She says that it helped quite a bit with her itchiness, which has been pretty bad in this cold, dry air and with the heat on. It didn’t really help with the redness, and we do reapply it routinely throughout the day, but relieving her itching alone was huge for her, so I was quite happy with that. I was worried that it wouldn’t be non-greasy, but it absorbed REALLY quickly. Usually, when we moisturize Caeleigh, her hair ends up all stringy and oily from the oil on her face (her patches of eczema are right around her ears and the side of her face, and under her chin, so where the hair routinely hits). With the emu oil, though, her hair didn’t have a chance to get greasy, which was pretty cool. And, she liked it. She’s rather picky about her moisturizers, and since I generally use things that smell pretty (usually with essential oils infused) to get her to wear them, and this one is just pure oil, that was REALLY good. I was surprised at how open she was to using it, even bringing it to me and insisting that I put it on her. That alone shows me how much it helped her itching.

I also used the Emu Oil on a small patch of chronic dry skin I’ve been having problems with on my hand. It was perfect, because it did absorb quickly and completely, so I could type or write or be on my tablet without worrying about getting oil everywhere (important when you’re a blogger, or college student, or homeschooler… or all 3!). And it did help my itching, which can get pretty severe. It should be noted, though, that the emu oil is only recommended to be used on non-broken skin.

The Manuka Oil and Honey Shampoo and Conditioner…. oh my heart. ((swoon)) This stuff smelled DIVINE. The Shampoo and Conditioner contains Manuka Oil, Manuka Honey, Lavender, Chamomile, Peppermint, and Rosehip Oil. Manuka Oil and Honey were the two ingredients I haven’t heard of, and it turns out they’re purifying and antiseptic, and work on shine and revitalization of hair. It was SUCH a treat to use this!! My hair is really damaged and dry, and after just one use, it was definitely softer and had more shine to it. I used for a couple of weeks, until Kaitlyn (13) stole it and used the rest of it. Her hair is curly and tends to frizz, and it was much more tame and healthy with her use of it. Overall, this is stuff I’ll definitely be buying again. And making sure that Kaitlyn has her own bottle.

The Emu Oil will run you $9.85 for a 2 ounce bottle, $18.20 for a 4 ounce bottle, or $32.40 for an 8 ounce bottle. (You can also buy from Koru Naturals if you’re outside of the US, check the site for prices in your denomination.) The Manuka Oil and Honey Shampoo runs for $5.75 for an 8 ounce bottle, and the Conditioner is also $5.75 for an 8 ounce bottle. The set together is $14.95.

We look forward to getting more supplies from Koru Naturals. The Crew has reviewed a lot of their products, including lip balm, restoring balm, and lanolin cream, so make sure you click the banner below to check them all out!

In Freedom’s Cause has a steller cast, including Joanne Froggratt of Downton Abbey (squeel!!), Billy Boyd of Lord of the Rings, James Cosmo of Braveheart and Highlander, and Skander Keynes of Chronicles of Narnia. This was an outstanding production, and extremely well done.

In Freedom’s Causetakes you through the story of the Scottish fight for freedom during the time of William Wallace and Robert the Bruce. Wallace was a man of God, who had planned on becoming a Benedictine monk before joining the cause for freedom. When his father and brother were killed at English hands, he left the monastery to help free Scotland. In Freedom’s Cause shows the listener the incredible faith the Wallace had, and how it was absolutely central to his life. As he was being tortured and killed, Wallace asked for his Psalter to be held up so he could read it for strength. This was the kind of incredible man William Wallace was, and In Freedom’s Causedoes a wonderful job of bringing that out. The drama also goes beyond Wallace and explores Robert the Bruce and the continuing fight for freedom that Scotland had in the years following Wallace’s death. We found out last year that Robert the Bruce is in our family tree, so this was pretty cool for us.

Although based off of Henty’s book, this is an audio drama production, and not an audiobook. This is no simple reading; the score was composed by John Campbell, who composed the Chronicles of Narnia Radio Theater score, and as I mentioned above, the actors are all absolutely stellar. The producers did their own research into Wallace and worked hard to bring him out in the story. I really think this brought the history to life for our kids. So, what did we think about it?

We listened to In Freedom’s Cause in one shot, on the road from Tennessee to Florida. I was a bit worried about having the kids listen to it in one solid setting like that, because it is quite long (it was 2 1/2 hours long), but I really shouldn’t have been! The kids, all of them from 4 to 13, were quiet and captivated the entire time. In fact, Kaitlyn (13) had to hop onto her virtual class towards the end of the drama, and asked that we play it again, from the beginning, just for her. They loved it! Here’s what they have to say:

Kaitlyn (13):

I loved it. It was full of action and adventure!

Patrick (12):

I thought it was fine. It was a bit disappointing that we were the bad guys.

**One of the antagonist family’s surname was the same as ours… all of my kids were very disappointed in that… AT FIRST! Keep listening, because we rock. That is all.***

Sean (7):

I LOVED it!! It had a bunch of swords and stuff!

So, yes, this is something we’ll be listening to over and over. (On a side note… do watch yourself listening to this with a Daddy who loves all things Scot-Irish. Especially if you’re going to be stuck in a car with him for the next 10 hours. You WILL be subjected to a really bad Scottish accent for the entire rest of the trip. You’ve been warned.)

OK, so now the specifics. In Freedom’s Cause comes in a 2 disk set and MP3 format. The drama runs about 2 1/2 hours, and is slated for ages 6-adult. There are also AWESOME bonuses available, including William Wallace’s Prayer, a beautiful printable of the 23rd Psalm in the Latin Vulgate (my kids are SO memorizing this this summer!!), the soundrack in MP3 format, a 30 minute Behind the Scenes documentary download entitled “Behind the Scenes in London”, the In Freedom’s Cause Membership Website, where they’re adding new bonuses, resources, and historical information, G.A. Henty’s In Freedom’s Cause ebook, with colorful graphics, and a promotional poster including cast photos for you to print and hang. All of these are downloads or websites.

Then, the final bonus is a Study Guide. The Study Guide is 49 pages in PDF format, and includes a short history lesson to get the kids interested, and then questions for each chapter. The questions are broken down into three parts: Listening Well, for comprehension, Thinking Further, for critical thinking, and then Defining Words (vocabulary). It also has a Bible Study at the end. The study guide is full color and is just beautiful, but I don’t recommend printing. It would drain your ink dry, and unless you have a super duper high speed printer, you might want to just use the PDF file. The one thing the Study Guide doesn’t have, and I wish it did, was a parent’s resource with answers to the questions. We listened to it together, but if I were assigning this for a history class, I would encourage them to listen to it independently , and I just don’t have the time to listen over and over (or closely enough) to find the answers myself. An answer key would be helpful.

Welcome back to Blogging Through the Alphabet! We took a bit of a break for Christmas and New Year, and here we are, ready to go!

This week, H is for Holidays. Because as soon as it seems like I finish one, another is around the corner. There is a rhythm, especially if your faith tradition uses a liturgical calendar. For the first time, we’re in one that does. And it’s exciting! But it’s also exhausting. I feel like I’m jumping from one holiday to the next, one fast, one feast, it’s always one more. Some days, I just want to jump off this ride and catch my breath!!

It’s times like that that I need to step back and remember. First of all, the holy days are not about me. The fasts are a time of reflection and remembrance. They’re when we stop and ponder. We wonder, and we give thanks. The fasts aren’t about me.

The feasts aren’t about me, either. They celebrate the holiness and awesomeness of God. They celebrate what He has given us, through His people, through His church, through all of His blessings. They celebrate our new lives with Him, in communion with Him. The feasts aren’t about me.

When I get caught up in rushing from one holy day to the next, which is so easy to do, coming out of the Nativity season, and heading very shortly into Lent, I need to step back and remember… These were designed to bring me closer to Him. They were given to me, a wonderful gift, to enrich and deepen my life in Him. It’s not about decorations and special foods (although, those can brighten a holy day). It’s about the sacredness, the mystery, and the One who is behind it all.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season, and may God bless you in the New Year.

What are you blogging about this week? Click the link below to grab the Blogging Through the Alphabet button, and join us!

Welcome to Blogging Through the Alphabet this week!! This week we’re on G, and I’m tackling what is ironically one of my kids’ FAVORITE subjects ~ Geometry.

I say ironically, because really, I hate geometry. To be fair, though, had I learned it like this, I probably wouldn’t hate it so much. We’re introducing Geometry using the Waldorf method. And it’s REALLY cool. I’ve blogged about it before, here, but it’s just so beautiful and, well, cool, I thought I’d bring it up again.

Waldorf Geometry uses free hand drawing, form drawing, and real life examples to teach the student about shapes. It’s introduced around 5th grade as it’s own block, but done so in a gentle, Waldorf-y way. For my kids, it really instilled a love of the shapes and colors.

Last year Danny did 5th grade Geometry. This year, he’s in 6th grade, and we’re letting him take the lead a bit more in his own school. He’s allowed to do any of the blocks he wants, whenever he wants, but he has to stick with the block topics in the book. He’s allowed to work at his own pace. I asked him if he wanted to start Geometry, and he shot that idea down. “I want to save the best for last!” Yeah, he loves it.

Freehanding the geometry shapes gives them a real sense of the shape and dimensions. They are also required to create a main lesson book with the concepts they’re learning in it, such as area, radius, any formulas, and the like.

The pictures in this post are taken from last year’s geometry lesson. I hope to have new ones to show you soon! In the meantime, if you want to learn more about Waldorf geometry, check out the beautiful videos below!

This is Jamie York’s geometry series. I’m just posting the first video of five, so make sure you check the Youtube sidebar to see all 5!

This next video is the Sample Video for Waldorf Essentials Geometry. This is what we use, and it’s simple and beautiful!

A few more, for your viewing pleasure. (Please keep in mind that many of these images were probably created by the teacher, not the students. Although quality is important, so is the experience. That’s what we focus on in our homeschool.)

What are you blogging about this week? Click on the button below to learn all about Blogging Through the Alphabet, and link up with us!

Welcome to Blogging Through the Alphabet!! We’re on F this week (apologies to my blogging friends for being late!), and I struggled a bit to decide what to post on. I finally settled on F is for Fasting. Mostly because I’m REALLY. HUNGRY.

In the Orthodox Church, we’re in the middle of the Nativity Fast. That means, no meat, dairy, eggs, cheese, fish, oil, or wine. (It’s a bit more complicated than that, we’re allowed fish, oil, and wine are certain days, but mostly you get the drift…) The Fast lasts for 40 days, and will end after Liturgy on Christmas Morning. This is our first major Fast (we do fast on Wednesdays and Fridays, as well, but this is the first extended Fast we’ve done), and here are some things I’ve learned:

1) Pay attention to the calendar. Because going out to your favorite farm to visit a friend the day before the Fast starts and coming home with a kick butt roast, beef bacon, chicken, and bones for broth is just not a good idea. Just don’t do this to yourself. My roast is staring at me in my freezer.

2) Pay attention to your protein. Lack of protein makes me hungry. I need protein to keep my blood sugar up. There is lots of protein apart from animal products, but I do need to pay attention to make sure I’m getting enough.

4) What we’re doing isn’t necessarily what everyone is doing, or what everyone *should* do. Because this is our first big Fast, we’re focusing on being meat-less, and giving ourselves more leniency with the eggs and cheese, especially since we have kids. That is what works for US. I know another family who is still eating chicken and fish during the Fast. They have health needs that require that. Speak to your priest about what works for you.

5) The Fast is not about food. Although we focus on food, the point is to bring us to prayer, and reflection. To bring us closer to God. That’s something we’re working on. The Nativity season is one of deep spirituality, that tends to get overlooked in the hustle and bustle and focus on celebration. We must remember, first to Fast, and then to Feast. This is a great article from Ancient Faith about the spiritual aspects of the Nativity Fast. It does us no good to fast from food, if we’re forgetting what we *should* be doing: Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving. Are you spending significant amounts of time in prayer and meditation? Are you giving alms, generously, without thought of what you are getting in return (including thanks, or a pat on the back)?

The Nativity Fast is giving us good preparation for Lent, which comes early this year. Although we’ve been far from perfect, we are praying, and working at it. We are focusing back on the meaning of the Season, reflection, and contemplation.

Come join us at Blogging Through The Alphabet!! Click the button below to head to the main page, and link up below!

Hey Whovians!! This week has been C.R.A.Z.Y. with piano recitals and sickness and St. Nicholas and… yeah, nuts. So we didn’t do our Doctor Who History this week. Instead, I thought I’d bring you some of the most awesome Doctor Who gifts for the little Whovian you have! Or for your. Whatever.

2) Doctor Who Clothing… OK, there are SO MANY ways you could do this. Of course, the standard Fourth Doctor’s Scarf, and the Fez and Bow Tie, to TONS of fan shirts and other stuff at ThinkGeek.com. Seriously tons of stuff there. Bathrobes to slippers, to tshirts, to PJ pants, to… whatever. Lots and lots. (Tons of other stuff besides clothing, too.)

***Just a disclaimer on ThinkGeek.com. Those guys have SERIOUSLY twisted senses of humor. Yesterday, when I was Christmas shopping, I kept finding the BEST STUFF. But it was April Fool’s Day jokes they never took down. Jerks. SO NOT COOL TO GET A GIRL’S HOPES UP LIKE THAT.***

3) Sonic Screwdrivers… OK, these are cool, I’ll be the first to admit. But you should know that they make a REALLY obnoxious sound. You don’t realize how obnoxious it is when the Doctor is pressing it for like 2 seconds on TV. Now, when your children are having Sonic Wars in the backseat of your van on a 16 hour road trip… yeah. However, if you can handle it, these are awesome gifts. So far, I’ve found the Tenth Doctor’s Screwdriver, 11th Doctor’s Screwdriver, and 12th Doctor’s Screwdriver, along with a Personalize Your Own Sonic Screwdriver Set, because… dude. Making your own sonic?? Too cool.

5) Assorted stuff. Because there’s just SO. MUCH. OUT. THERE!! From teapots to mugs to floating TARDIS’ to banks to safes and EVERYTHING you could imagine in between!!! The widget below has a TON. Between that and ThinkGeek, you should be able to find anything you could want for the Companion in your life! Also, check out your local bookstores (we found a BUNCH of stuff at Books-a-Million last year), and stores like HotTopic.

Welcome to this month’s 5 on the 5th!! Every month, along with other awesome bloggers, I’m going to highlight 5 of my favorite posts from the previous month. So, here are my posts from November!!

1) Middle School Monday ~ Nonsense Poetry at KymPossible Blog This is such a fun blog to read, anyway, and I’m definitely loving the Middle School Monday posts! Nonsense Poetry is something I can totally get my kids into!

3) Atoms and the Periodic Table from Homeschool Escapade. Because we’re having problems getting the kids to “visualize” atoms and molecules… and I love these ideas!!

4) A is for Advent and B is for Books from Circling Through This Life. Tess explained the Nativity Fast, and gave me some great reading to do, to prepare our hearts for the birth of Christ. Thank you Tess!!

5) Homeschool Alumni Survey at Some Call It Natural. I think this is just an outstanding idea, and I’m anxious to see the follow up to this.

So, there you have it! 5 of my favorite posts of the month!! Check out what the other wonderful bloggers’ favorites were this month!!

I love having a hands on, low tech environment for my kids to learn in. That’s seriously beautiful. In theory. In reality, I have 6 kids, 3 of whom are actually schooling, and there is no way I can cover everything we need to do, every single day. So, I take serious advantage of eLearning opportunities, and here are some of the best ones I’ve found!

For the iPad/Tablet

Apps are my friend. For reals. Last week, my computer was completely out of commission,and our tablets saved our school. I can put PDF files into my Kindle app, we have phonics apps (Literacy Soft’s Phonics and Reading with McGuffy App), math apps (IXL and Xtra Math apps, both only work on iPad, though), apps for timelines (Knowledge Quest), apps for music (KinderBach)… There’s seriously an app for everything. Plus, the kids are able to use the tablets to get into their online classes through the Adobe Connect app. These seriously turn my iPad into a one-stop-go-to for everything we need for school, particularly if we’re schooling on the road, or have a lot going on that day.

Online Classes

So, if you follow me on Facebook, you might have heard how we decided to enroll Kaitlyn in virtual school this year. We chose the Classical Resource Learning Center. I love this. I can’t tell you how much I love this. This makes me happy, for so many reasons.

1) Kaitlyn is seeing that I’m not just a cruel Mama-slave-driver who is forcing her to do things NO OTHER CHILD IN THE WORLD has to do. Because, this was an issue. Now, Mama’s not making the assignments. And Mama lets her sink or swim. It’s a beautiful thing. It’s been a hard first semester, but Kaitlyn has learned so many character and life lessons, it’s totally been worth it.

3) The courses are rigorous, without being ridiculous. Although it was REALLY hard for Kaitlyn to get into the swing of class discussions and what was expected of her, now that she’s getting there, she’s doing well, and growing in leaps and bounds. I can see it in the way she speaks, the things she says. It’s awesome to watch her grow. She thought she couldn’t do it. She’s doing it. It’s awesome.

4) CLRC is Eastern Orthodox friendly. Since finding the Orthodox church, Prince Charming and I have been shocked at how much history we missed. We want our children to learn much more than we did, we want them to learn to love the Church, and her people, and to understand her. I don’t want worldviews being taught that contradict her. I know with CLRC, my kids are getting that. They even have a whole section on Eastern Studies. Love love love love that.

5) Because it is a classical resource, I’m able to merge our Waldorf learning well into it. Waldorf is all about teaching the appropriate subjects at the appropriate times. What Kaitlyn is learning this year is what she would be learning in a Waldorf school, anyway.

We are VERY happy with the courses we’re taking at CLRC, and have plans to enroll the boys next year. This year, we’re taking:

CLRC offers MANY more classes, and next year, Kaitlyn will be doing Greek, modern languages (we’re thinking French), along with other classes on CLRC. We’re really excited for that! The boys will be taking everything they can on CLRC.

A+ Tutor Software… The big kids are doing CLRC Basic Math for their math, and Sean is using A+ Tutor Software this year for his. They have a new Family Math Package, where you can move your students in between levels, buying just one package. This works REALLY well for us, because Sean is just a bit behind in their math program, but is catching up QUICKLY. So, we have him in the 1st grade math now, but I expect him to be out of it by the end of 2014, and I can switch him right into 2nd grade math, without buying a new package. I would encourage anyone who is looking for a solid, comprehensive math program for any age to check out A+ Tutor Software. Plus, he can do it with me on the iPad, which works just fine.

In addition to these formal programs, we also use our tablets and computers for TONS of documentary watching, article reading, current events, and so much more. We love eLearning, it makes keeping on track in our crazy, busy lives so much easier and more attainable!

How do you use eLearning in your homeschool? Do you have a favorite program or app? Comment below and let me know! And check out what everyone else has going on in the Blogging Through the Alphabet series this week!! And, don’t forget to enter the Kindle Fire Christmas Giveaway!!!

The Crew is on hiatus from writing reviews until January. So while we have a little time on our hands, we thought we’d bless our awesome readers with a super cool Christmas Fire Giveaway! Twenty of our team members and The Old Schoolhouse have joined together to sponsor this incredible giveaway with 3 winners!

We are excited to be giving away not one, not two, but THREE Fire HD Tablets!

Giveaway

Terms and Conditions:

This giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. Void where prohibited by law. Must be at least 18 years of age. This giveaway is in no away associated with Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, or Amazon. No purchase necessary for entry. Odds are determined by the number of entries. Selected winner will have 48 hours to respond to email notification to claim their prize or another winner will be drawn. Entry into this giveaway will subscribe you to the Schoolhouse Review Crew email list.

Welcome back to Whovian Wednesdays! We took last week off for Thanksgiving, but we’re back in full swing now!! We left off at Lesson 7 with The Girl in the Fireplace, set in 18th Century France.

**whew** This one was a bit… much for Danny. While he loved the episode, he was a bit icked out by the Doctor’s romance with Madame du Pompadour, and even less impressed when I actually had him read biographies of her. hehehe He’s in an all-romance-is-gross-and-I’m-never-getting-married stage. The evil mom in me thought it was kinda funny, to be honest.

So, after I had my fun (“But he looooooooooooves her!!” “Mom!! STOPPIT!! IT’S THE DOCTOR!” “Noooooooo, he loves Rose!!”), we got on to the good stuff. Danny did do biographical research on Madame du Pompadour, and wrote an essay about her. (Note… be prepared for some interesting questions, especially if you have younger students. Such as, “Mom? What’s a “mistress”? Like Missy?” Um, no. And “Mom, what’s a courtesan?” Fun fun.) After that, I let him get back to the Doctor Who stuff, and he wrote another essay about why the Clockwork Droids chose her. He has lots of theories on that.

Danny also drew a map of France, and labelled the Palace of Versailles on it. I like having him draw out the maps in his main lesson book more than just label black line maps. I think we’ll continue doing that.

There is SO much art history to study, and he had a good time doing that, and going off on rabbit trails, so I just let him. It’s art. It’s supposed to be full of rabbit trails. He also has a Minecraft activity, but we just bought the actual Minecraft on the computer, rather than the free app, so he’s busy redoing all of his lessons in that, to save them. Or something. I don’t get Minecraft, but he assures me he’s not just swindling villagers, he’s actually working.

Finally, the literature and movies available for this time period are ABUNDANT! In fact, I had a really hard time picking one for him. We finally decided on The Three Muskateers by Alexandre Dumas. When he’s done reading, which should be shortly, we’ll watch the Disney version of the movie. Because… Paul McGann, Tim Curray, Chris O’Donnell… Oh my!! I love that movie. There are some other great novels and movies in the widget below, so check them out!

Follow Me!

Vote for Me!!

Follow Me Here!

Subscribe for emails

Help Support The Potter’s Hand Academy!!

These are my affiliate and business links. When you click and buy from these outstanding companies, I get a small compensation. The compensation I receive in NO WAY increases the price you pay, and these are ALL companies I have personally used and recommend. Thank you for supporting our family!

Timez Attack has revolutionized multiplication games. It's as polished as a high-end real video game, yet as effective as a top math tutor one-on-one. The built-in assessment, adaptation, and post-test research data guarantee total mastery.